"Nikita" is bowing out very quietly. "Hope" is fading at FOX. A beloved star's return hasn't gone all th... Show More »

"Nikita" is bowing out very quietly. "Hope" is fading at FOX. A beloved star's return hasn't gone all that well for NBC. It's that time of year again, where Zap2it tallies up the list of each network's least-watched shows. / As with our past least-watched lists, the 2013 rankings include the five least-watched series at each of the five English-language broadcast networks. So while "Undercover Boss" is doing just fine in the overall rankings, it's still among the Bottom 5 at CBS. / The fine print: For the purpose of this list, Zap2it considered only regularly scheduled airings of 96 first-run shows on ABC, CBS, The CW, FOX and NBC from the start of the broadcast season in late September. Off-night repeats, Saturday-night rerun blocks and football pre-kick and post-game shows were removed. The five least-watched series (through Dec. 15; all ratings numbers are "most current" figures from Nielsen) on each network follow, ranked from smallest number of total viewers to largest. « Less

2/26

'Nikita' (The CW):

Viewers: 926,000 / Rank: 96th in viewers, 96th in 18-49 (0.3) / Fun fact: The final season of The CW's action s... Show More »

Viewers: 926,000 / Rank: 96th in viewers, 96th in 18-49 (0.3) / Fun fact: The final season of The CW's action show is the only one on this list clocking in at under a million viewers. « Less

3/26

'The Carrie Diaries' (The CW):

Viewers: 1.03 million / Rank: 95th in viewers, 95th in 18-49 (0.4) / Fun fact: A bubble show last season... Show More »

Viewers: 1.03 million / Rank: 95th in viewers, 95th in 18-49 (0.4) / Fun fact: A bubble show last season on Mondays, "Carrie" has had a tougher time on Friday nights, losing about 470,000 viewers (a drop of about 30 percent) of its total audience and falling two-tenths of a point in the 18-49 demo. « Less

4/26

'Beauty and the Beast' (The CW):

Viewers: 1.31 million / Rank: 94th in viewers, 94th in 18-49 (0.5) / Fun fact: Like "The Carrie Diarie... Show More »

Viewers: 1.31 million / Rank: 94th in viewers, 94th in 18-49 (0.5) / Fun fact: Like "The Carrie Diaries," "BatB" has suffered on a new night. Since moving away from the post-"Vampire Diaries" slot, the show has shed a little less than half a million viewers, a 27 percent drop vs. Season 1. « Less

5/26

'Hart of Dixie' (The CW):

Viewers: 1.57 million / Rank: 93rd in viewers, 93rd in 18-49 (0.7) / Fun fact: In its third season, "Hart of ... Show More »

Viewers: 1.57 million / Rank: 93rd in viewers, 93rd in 18-49 (0.7) / Fun fact: In its third season, "Hart of Dixie" is making its first appearance on the least-watched list. « Less

Viewers: 2.3 million / Rank: 92nd in viewers, tied for 90th in adults 18-49 (0.9) / Fun fact: "Reign" is running just slightly ahead of where "Beauty and the Beast" was (2.26 million) in the same timeslot at this time last year. « Less

7/26

'Raising Hope' (FOX):

Viewers: 2.75 million (combined average for both Friday airings) / Rank: 90th in viewers, tied for 87th in 18-49 ... Show More »

Viewers: 2.75 million (combined average for both Friday airings) / Rank: 90th in viewers, tied for 87th in 18-49 (1.0) / Fun fact: As expected, "Hope" has fallen off considrably since moving from Tuesdays to Fridays. Last season at this time, the show was averaging about 4.7 million viewers. « Less

Viewers: 2.94 million / Rank: 89th in viewers, tied for 90th in 18-49 (0.9) / Fun fact: FOX's prime-time college football slate this season fell well below ABC's more established "Saturday Night Football" franchise. « Less

9/26

'Welcome to the Family' (NBC):

Viewers: 3.11 million / Rank: 88th in viewers, 85th in 18-49 (1.1) / Fun fact: As the lowest-rated membe... Show More »

Viewers: 3.11 million / Rank: 88th in viewers, 85th in 18-49 (1.1) / Fun fact: As the lowest-rated member of NBC's Thursday comedy lineup -- you'll see a theme emerge in the coming slides -- "Welcome to the Family" got a quick hook, lasting just three episodes. « Less

10/26

'What Would You Do?' (ABC):

Viewers: 3.19 million / Rank: 86th in viewers, tied for 87th in 18-49 / Fun fact: The utility player from A... Show More »

Viewers: 3.19 million / Rank: 86th in viewers, tied for 87th in 18-49 / Fun fact: The utility player from ABC News has had very little impact on the ratings in its brief run late in the fall. « Less

11/26

'The Mindy Project' (FOX):

Viewers: 3.83 million / Rank: 83rd in viewers, tied for 57th in 18-49 (2.0) / Fun fact: Though "Mindy" is th... Show More »

Viewers: 3.83 million / Rank: 83rd in viewers, tied for 57th in 18-49 (2.0) / Fun fact: Though "Mindy" is the least-watched of FOX's Tuesday comedies, it's fairly close its averages from last season at this time (4.11 million viewers, 2.2 in 18-49). Its demo numbers are a good sight better than its overall audience, which could provide a glimmer of hope for fans. « Less

12/26

'Parks and Recreation' (NBC):

Viewers: 4.14 million / Rank: 81st in viewers, tied for 64th in 18-49 (1.8) / Fun fact: Other than CBS... Show More »

Viewers: 4.14 million / Rank: 81st in viewers, tied for 64th in 18-49 (1.8) / Fun fact: Other than CBS' "48 Hours," "Parks" is the longest-running series on this list. « Less

13/26

'Lucky 7' (ABC):

Viewers: 4.3 million / Rank: 80th in viewers, tied for 82nd in 18-49 (1.3) / Fun fact: The drama about a group of lott... Show More »

Viewers: 4.3 million / Rank: 80th in viewers, tied for 82nd in 18-49 (1.3) / Fun fact: The drama about a group of lottery winners was the first new show of the season to be canceled. « Less

14/26

'Sean Saves the World' (NBC):

Viewers: 4.33 million / Rank: 79th in viewers, tied for 77th in 18-49 (1.4) / Fun fact: The show starring... Show More »

Viewers: 4.33 million / Rank: 79th in viewers, tied for 77th in 18-49 (1.4) / Fun fact: The show starring one quarter of the "Will & Grace" core cast draws about a quarter of the audience of that show in its best seasons. « Less

15/26

'Dads' (FOX):

Viewers: 4.34 million / Rank: 78th in viewers, tied for 64th in 18-49 (1.8) / Fun fact: Arguably the worst-reviewed new s... Show More »

Viewers: 4.34 million / Rank: 78th in viewers, tied for 64th in 18-49 (1.8) / Fun fact: Arguably the worst-reviewed new series of the fall, "Dads" tried to turn critical revulsion into a marketing tactic. It didn't work all that well. « Less

Viewers: 4.61 million / Rank: 77th in viewers, tied for 82nd in 18-49 (1.3) / Fun fact: The 10 p.m. Sunday timeslot has become a problematic one for ABC, and "Betrayal" has only deepened the problem. It's running way behind what "666 Park Avenue" (6.5 million viewers, 2.4 in 18-49) did there in fall 2012. « Less

Viewers: 4.96 million / Rank: 73rd in viewers, tied for 71st in 18-49 (1.7) / Fun fact: NBC chops its weekly highlight show into three parts for ratings purposes -- and part 1 isn't even counted. It's "sustained," or aired without ad support, and therefore not part of the weekly and season calculation. « Less

Viewers: 4.98 million / Rank: 72nd in viewers, tied for 75th in 18-49 (1.5) / Fun fact: ABC initially considered airing this show during the original "Once Upon a Time's" winter hiatus. Instead it's the latest victim of the network's 8 p.m. Thursday curse. « Less

21/26

'The Michael J. Fox Show' (NBC):

Viewers: 5.67 million / Rank: 66th in viewers, tied for 64th in 18-49 (1.8) / Fun fact: The show can t... Show More »

Viewers: 5.67 million / Rank: 66th in viewers, tied for 64th in 18-49 (1.8) / Fun fact: The show can take consolation in the fact that it's the top performer among NBC's Thursday comedies, although that doesn't count for a heck of a lot anymore. « Less

22/26

'48 Hours' (CBS):

Viewers: 5.78 million / Rank: 64th in viewers, tied for 87th in 18-49 / Fun fact: Most shows that make our least-watc... Show More »

Viewers: 5.78 million / Rank: 64th in viewers, tied for 87th in 18-49 / Fun fact: Most shows that make our least-watched list end up being canceled, but "48 Hours" is the only one to appear on every list since we started them in 2007. Its Saturday timeslot and relatively low cost to the network make it renewable despite the modest audience figures. « Less

23/26

'We Are Men' (CBS):

Viewers: 6.72 million / Rank: 54th in viewers, tied for 49th in 18-49 / Fun fact: The weakest performer in CBS'... Show More »

Viewers: 6.72 million / Rank: 54th in viewers, tied for 49th in 18-49 / Fun fact: The weakest performer in CBS' Monday comedy block was gone quickly, lasting just two episodes. « Less

24/26

'Hostages' (CBS) :

Viewers: 7.34 million / Rank: 46th in viewers, tied for 62nd in 18-49 (1.9) / Fun fact: "Hostages" does pretty well ... Show More »

Viewers: 7.34 million / Rank: 46th in viewers, tied for 62nd in 18-49 (1.9) / Fun fact: "Hostages" does pretty well in Nielsen's DVR ratings, growing by more than 50 percent in viewers, but even with those gains it's still a distant third in its Monday-night timeslot. « Less

25/26

'Mom' (CBS):

Viewers: 8.39 million / Rank: 41st in viewers, tied for 33rd in 18-49 (2.6) / Fun fact: Although it's near the bottom... Show More »

Viewers: 8.39 million / Rank: 41st in viewers, tied for 33rd in 18-49 (2.6) / Fun fact: Although it's near the bottom of the CBS lineup, "Mom" still draws a bigger audience than every comedy on NBC and FOX and all but "Modern Family" and "The Middle" on ABC. « Less

26/26

'Undercover Boss' (CBS):

Viewers: 9.13 million / Rank: 37th in viewers, tied for 64th in 18-49 (1.8) / Fun fact: Here only because of C... Show More »

Viewers: 9.13 million / Rank: 37th in viewers, tied for 64th in 18-49 (1.8) / Fun fact: Here only because of CBS' relative strength compared to the other networks. « Less

"Nikita" is bowing out very quietly. "Hope" is fading at FOX. A beloved star's
return hasn't gone all that well for NBC. It's that time of year again, where
Zap2it tallies up the list of each network's least-watched shows.